The invention claimed herein applies to a device that can attach to and release an object. There are many scenarios where attaching and subsequently releasing a hook to/from an object can be challenging. For example, the current means of launching or recovering an unmanned underwater vehicle (UUV) over the side of a vessel's deck into the water often requires a user to lean over the side of the vessel while hanging onto the vessel and either manually hooking or manually releasing the UUV. This is dangerous for the user and the UUV and can be further complicated by rough seas as both the vessel and UUV are moving.